Shank for boots or shoes



(NoModel.)

W. N. SPRAGUE.

' SHANK FOR BOOTS ORSHOBS. No. 603,367. Patentd Maly 3,1898.

wigasses UNITED STTES PATENT OFFICE. 1

WATSON N. SPRAGUE, OF GREENWIOI-I, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO SPRAGUE & CO., OF MIDDLE FALLS, NEW YORK.

SHANK FOR BOOTS OR Ys HOEs.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent-No. 603,367, dated May 3, 1898. f

Application nieuwe 14,1897.

To a/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WATSON N. SPEAGUE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Greenwich, in the county of Washington and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Shank for Boots, Shoes, te., of which the following is a specification.

Shanks for boots, shoes, and like foot-gear and coverings are stiffened by metallic strips applied thereto and usually secured by rivets, tacks, or like fastenings, which require the expenditure of a great amount of labor in addition to the cost of the fastenings.

The purpose of this invention is to obviate the use of extra fastenings for securing the metallic stilfener to the shank and to lessen the labor, consequently reducing the cost of production, and the stifener can be narrower and thinner, which is of advantage in the manufacture' of finer grades of shoes.

For a full understanding of the merits and advantages of the invention reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings and the following description.

l The improvement is susceptible of various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details'of construction without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof, and to a full disclosure of the invention an adaptation thereof is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which#- Figure l is a perspective view of a shoeshank having a stiffener applied thereto in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is aperspective view of the shank havin g the stiffener removed therefrom. Fig. 8 is a detail view of the shank-stiffener. Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the shank with the stiffener applied thereto.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated inthe several views of the drawings by the same reference characters.

The shank is composed of leather, leatherboard, or other material generally employed in the manufacture of shanks and counters for boots and shoes, said shank being of desired shape and having a notch 2 in its heel for the reception of the butt-end of thetiffener 3.

The stiffener is constructed of a strip of sheet metal of proper length doubled upon Serial No. 640,673. (No model.)

itself and tted upon the shank, so as tov embrace the top and bottom sides thereof between its members. The strip is comparatively thin and narrow and is retained in place IVby clenching the folded members upon opposite sides of the shank, the pressure being such as to cause the members of the stiffener to become partially embedded in the shank, as indicated at 4. The strip from which the stiffener is formed may be flat or straight between its longitudinal edges, or may be concavo-convex, or have any desired outline; but it is preferred to have it concavo-convex, the concave side facing the shank and the convex side being outermost, whereby ease and comfort are secured to the wearer and the stiffener is strengthened. After the metallic strip is folded and fitted to the shank the latter is passed between rolls, which clench the stiffener and embed it into the material of the shank, as will' be readily understood. The notch 2 prevents lateral displacement of the stiffener at the heel end ofthe shank.

I-Iaving thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is- 1. Thecombination with a shank for boots, shoes, &c. of a'stiffener composed of a metallic strip having a portion folded to embrace retain thestiffener in place, substantially as set forth. l

2. The combination with a shank for boots and shoes having a notch in one end, of a stiffener composed of a metallic strip having Ya portion folded to embrace the sides of the WATSON N. SPRAGUE.

Witnesses:

ANDREW MEALEY, Y.TOEN F. SOULLY.

48o the sides of the shank and clenched thereon to 

